A Table for Everyone on Broad River Road
On the western edge of Columbia, where Broad River Road curves through a long-settled stretch of Richland County, St. Andrew's Lutheran Church's motto is "Where Everyone Has A Place At The Table." The line is not just a slogan but a working description of how the congregation sees itself. From the two Sunday morning services where every pew is offered the bread and wine of Holy Communion, to the white stucco parsonage out back that the church has loaned to Lutheran Services Carolinas for refugee resettlement, the invitation extends outward in every direction. St. Andrew's is a member congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), part of the South Carolina Synod, and the people here work hard to keep the welcome concrete.
Two Sunday Mornings, Both with Communion
Worship happens twice on Sunday at St. Andrew's. The early service gathers at 8:30 a.m. and the later one at 10:30 a.m., and both include a celebration of Holy Communion. Order of service bulletins are printed and used as a guide, with hymnal references and the spoken or sung parts of the liturgy printed in full. The service follows a formal Lutheran liturgy followed during each service, but it is dressed in varied clothing week to week. Contemporary elements show up through the music and through dramatic presentations, especially when the children of Bible Play Day or the youth take a turn leading.
Visitors arriving for the first time should know a few practical things. There is no dress code; suits and jeans sit side by side in the pews. Kneeling during the confession and prayers is offered as optional. The congregation is encouraged to stand for the Gospel reading and at other cues from the worship leader, but that, too, is an invitation rather than a requirement. Children of all ages are welcome in worship, and small busy hands are anticipated: activity bags are available, and parents who need a quick step-out can take young children into the open narthex where they can still see and hear the service. An usher is ready to help at the door.
Communion is open to anyone who wishes to receive it, with no questions asked and no denominational litmus test. Anyone who is not yet Lutheran, or who has never been part of a church at all, is welcome at the table. The liturgy grew out of the ancient Catholic church and retains the rhythm of standing, sitting, and kneeling that Lutherans have practiced for centuries. For those who cannot attend in person, services are livestreamed and archived on the church's YouTube channel.
Music That Balances Tradition and Surprise
If a single program at St. Andrew's surprises first-time visitors more than any other, it is the music. Jenny Walrath has served as Director of Music Ministries for more than thirty-five years. She is a graduate of Wake Forest University in music education, and she accompanies every service, plans alongside the pastor, directs the handbell choir, and offers a music experience for the youngest members during Sunday School hour. Nancy Gibbons, a Wittenberg University graduate in choral music education, directs the Adult Choir and the Ensemble Choir.
The Adult Choir rehearses almost every Wednesday evening at 7 p.m. and sings each Sunday as well as at special services throughout the year. Membership is open to anyone from high-school age upward, and newcomers can join at any time. The Ensemble Choir is the more informal sibling of the Adult Choir, drawing middle-schoolers through adults who play guitar, percussion, or sing, and whose repertoire ranges across styles. Handbells ring out Monday evenings at 7 p.m., a group that welcomes beginners and seasoned ringers alike. On select Sundays during the school year, children in grades 1 through 5 gather for Elementary Music, where they learn about the role of musical offerings in worship while exploring many kinds of instruments.
Special music, by instrumentalists, vocalists, or handbell choirs, is layered into services throughout the year. Children and youth lead pieces regularly, and the church's longtime puppet tradition, including Jenny's alter ego, "Penny," has long been part of how the youngest members engage.
Children and Teens, From Little Lutherans to the Luther League
Faith formation for the young runs deep at St. Andrew's. Sunday School classes for every age meet at 9:30 a.m. between the two worship services, with teachers using age-appropriate lessons that walk children through the Bible and what it means to live out faith day to day. The hour is structured so that the same adults and children meet weekly, building relationships over time.
For the very young, Little Lutherans gathers infants through second graders and their families once a month for fellowship and service. Third through fifth graders have their own group, Luther League, which meets monthly under parent leadership for fellowship and service projects. The middle- and high-school Youth Group meets at least once a month for outings, movie nights, faith-based learning, and service projects. They take at least one overnight retreat a year, and during the summer they complete service projects in the community and travel to service-focused programs. Every three years they travel to the ELCA Youth Gathering, which draws roughly 30,000 Lutheran youth from across the country. The group is currently a part of the Formation Co-Op, a two-year ELCA initiative rooted in helping young people develop a lifelong faith through life-giving community.
One Sunday of each month during the Sunday School hour, children in second through fifth grades gather for Bible Play Day, a program of drama exercises, theatre games, and improvisation. The children work on a skit based on that day's lesson, and those who choose to may present it during the 10:30 worship service. Through the program the children learn Bible stories, explore their faith, and pick up life skills like public speaking. Vacation Bible School rounds out a week each summer for children from age 3 through fifth grade, with Bible stories, games, drama, crafts, and music. Paige Gibbons, who holds a bachelor's degree in Music Therapy from Appalachian State University, leads the Children's Music Ministry and works alongside the youth to create opportunities for spiritual, personal, and community growth.
A Welcome House, a Food Pantry, and a Promise Kept
Service to neighbors well beyond the church walls is woven into the identity of St. Andrew's. The Social Ministry Committee donates annually to a roster of local charities including Cooperative Ministry, Harvest Hope Food Bank, the Free Medical Clinic, Resurrections, and the Washington Street Methodist Soup Kitchen. Members donate non-perishable food items that are delivered to Virginia Wingard United Methodist Church for that congregation's local food pantry, with overflow going to Harvest Hope. Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary receives ongoing support as well, and Newberry College benefits from a line in the church budget.
The most tangible piece of the church's refugee outreach sits on the campus itself. The former parsonage has been converted into a Welcome House, used by Lutheran Services Carolinas as a Refugee Resettlement House. In a joint effort between LSC and St. Andrew's, the home provides a temporary safe place for vulnerable refugees from across the world, people who have suffered persecution in their homelands, as they wait to be placed in permanent housing and supported through the early days of a new life and culture. "God's word calls us to love God and neighbor: All neighbors. The ones in our pews. The ones in the Refugee Welcome House behind our church."
St. Andrew's became involved with Family Promise of the Midlands in 2017. Family Promise, a national nonprofit founded in 1986 with affiliates in more than 180 U.S. cities, brings faith communities together to help families experiencing homelessness regain housing, independence, and dignity. The church's support runs beyond financial giving to meals, social activities, Christmas gifts, celebrations, and mentoring. The church has also developed a deep partnership with Gamecock Lutheran, the Lutheran Campus Ministry at the University of South Carolina, and students from that ministry often join the congregation for worship and other activities.
Lenten Dramas, Penned by a Playwright-Pastor
On Wednesday evenings in Lent, the sanctuary at St. Andrew's becomes a small theater. Pastor John Trump has a Master of Fine Arts in playwriting from Columbia University, alongside a Master of Divinity from Yale, and he writes original dramas for the congregation each Lent, exploring a theme ("Fear Not" was a recent series) through short plays performed by members of the church. One Lenten drama explored the fear of spiders through a husband and wife in the kitchen; another tackled fear-mongering in politics by way of an imaginary candidate running for "animal control officer"; a third brought a borrowed casket into a spare bedroom to dig into the fear of death. The plays are funny at times and meaningful at others, and the performances draw elementary-aged audience members who are not shy about reacting out loud. The casket, borrowed from Dunbar Funeral Home, became the visual centerpiece for the death-themed evening.
Pastor Trump, who grew up the son of a Lutheran pastor in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, served parishes in New York City and in Georgetown, South Carolina during Hurricane Hugo recovery before arriving at St. Andrew's. He holds a bachelor's in English Literature from Muhlenberg College, is a third-generation Lutheran pastor, and is known around the parish for tales of bicycling, marathon running, and the college football he played. He and his wife Beth raised their twin boys at St. Andrew's, where he teaches the Word of God in Bible studies, in sermons, and through these Lenten plays.
Deacon Sandra Holland joined the St. Andrew's staff in 2010 after fifteen years at St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Charlotte and seven years in the Region 9 office of the ELCA. A Columbia native and Lenoir-Rhyne University graduate, she is married to Scott Holland, a Lutheran pastor serving at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Irmo. Together they make a household that visits two Midlands-area congregations and one grandchild. Her favorite part of the work is "seeing the Holy Spirit at work in and through the people."
Faith Formation for Adults
Adults grow in several ways at St. Andrew's. The Genesis Class most often studies the lectionary readings for the coming Sunday and at times picks up topical series. The Sojourner's Class, made up of long-time learners who have been walking in faith for many years, follows an Augsburg Fortress curriculum. The Women's Class brings together a range of generations and stages of life around a shared study.
Beyond the Sunday School hour, two standing Bible studies run during the week. Retired and Restless meets at 11 a.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays. The Disciples Bible Study runs in two sessions so that a variety of work and life schedules are accommodated: Monday morning at 11:00 a.m. and Wednesday evening at 5:45 p.m., either in person at the church or via Zoom. Both give congregants a chance to study what formed the faith of Jesus and to ask how his teachings guide everyday life. The pastor's weekly reflections extend that study into the week, taking on current events, history, books, and the occasional lesson from a borrowed casket, all through a theological lens.
Fellowship Around Tables of Grace
Plenty at St. Andrew's happens around food. Lutheran Women gathers at 10:30 a.m. on the first Wednesday of each month, working to grow in faith, affirm one another's gifts, support each other in their callings, engage in ministry and action, and promote healing and wholeness in the church and community. Lutheran Men meets at 6:30 p.m. on the second Tuesday of the month for a meal, faith conversation, and planning for service. The Women's Book Club meets every other month at a member's home, and the Young At Heart group for seniors hosts monthly field trips, meals, and fellowship. Tables of Grace, a supper club, gathers members in groups of around eight for dinner in homes twice a year, in the fall and again in the spring, drawing people together who might not otherwise cross paths during a busy week.
The church building is also a hub for the wider neighborhood. It hosts a Saturday morning AA meeting and an Al-Anon meeting on both Tuesdays and Saturdays in the Social Hall, as well as a Sunday evening SA group. ESL classes meet in the building during the week, and Iglesia Tabernaculo Church uses the facilities as well. The building is used all throughout the week for a variety of group meetings.
What We Believe
St. Andrew's describes itself in four shapes: we are church, we are Lutheran, we are church together, and we are church for the sake of the world. The Lutherans at Broad River Road walk by faith, trusting God's promise in the gospel and finding their identity in the proclamation that Jesus Christ is crucified and raised from the dead for the life of the world. The central place given to the gospel word, in preaching and the sacraments, in forgiveness and in healing conversation, is the Lutheran inheritance.
The congregation is part of the ELCA and through it the Lutheran World Federation, and the people here see Lutheran identity as ecumenical. Unity in Christ across denominations is the goal; cultural and theological differences within the wider church are received as gifts rather than threats. The ELCA's commitment to confronting racism, sexism, classism, and other forms of injustice is named explicitly. Service to neighbors flows from baptism: "every act of service, in every daily calling, in every corner of life, flows freely from a living, daring confidence in God's grace." The full theological language of the church is drawn from the ELCA.
Reaching the Building and Getting Connected
St. Andrew's Lutheran Church sits at 1416 Broad River Road, Columbia, SC 29210, with a separate cemetery at 407 St. Andrews Road. The church office is open Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., and the phone rings into that office at (803) 772-6034. Visitors may park in the lot off Atlantic Drive; an accessible ramp is near the front door in the circle drive, which is also reached from Atlantic Drive. Usher and member greeters are posted at the doors to offer assistance.
Giving is supported online through Vanco, and links to the Realm Connect app are available for both Apple and Android devices so members can keep up with the church calendar, the directory, and member resources. The weekly eNews, monthly newsletter, calendar, and sermon archive are all posted online, and the church's Facebook page carries regular updates alongside the YouTube livestream. Prayer requests may be submitted online; urgent ones can be directed to the pastor or deacon through the church office. "In person can you truly come to know whether or not you are called to be a part of this community. Come and see!"